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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. scale — in music
  3. mug — a face
  4. spring — the season
  5. present — there
  6. race — the arms race
  7. degree — from a university
  8. kick — in football
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. spring — of water
  11. mug — to rob
  12. present — the time now
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. spring — a coil
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. race — a contest
  17. scale — size or range
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mug — a cup
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. race — humankind
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. degree — an amount

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com